A New Life
by Funsized-killjoy
Summary: Alyica Kayne, Ali, went through a lot working on the "Kira Case".  Now she's in America and just wants to forget her pain.  Unfortunately that's not about to happen.  Auther's Note: Yes, the times lines for both Death Note and Criminal Minds are wrong.
1. Friday the 13th

Chapter 1: Friday the 13th

"_Grandpa! Grandpa what's wrong!" _

_ I cried then. No, maybe. I hadn't started right then. At that moment I was fixated on convincing myself we hadn't been found. Convincing myself Grandpa wasn't having a heart attack. Convincing myself he had only accidently hit the emergency erase button. But then he fell. He had been saying something, but I wasn't paying attention. My mind was focused on _convincing _myself. But then he fell. Maybe, if Grandpa had been in this room when it started, this wouldn't have hit me so hard. But when he dropped his spoon, when he stopped in mid-sentence, when he slowly rolled to the side, it felt as if I had been shot. It took several seconds for me to realize the pain in my chest was not a heart attack. Not half a moment after I had this realization, I was on the ground; he was in my arms._

"_No!" I cried, again and again. I called his name, over and over. He stared up, his eyes glazed. He blinked once. His lips moved, slowly. "I'm sorry…" I heard, just barely, and then watched as his eyes closed, forever. Those two words brought reality crashing down around me, like a chandelier that's tether had snapped. Glass seemed to shatter and fall around me as blood rushed through my ears. In less then one minute my world had been destroyed. Tears flooded down my face and a sob racked my body. _

_After several moments passed I began to realized my heart was still beating. I could hear the blood in my ears and feel the pulse in my chest. One simple truth came to my attention._ I am alive. _This one simple truth, which had made me rejoice so many times before, now tore me apart. He was not alive. Grandpa was not alive. I was alive, but they were not. My thoughts flashed back to the conversation I had overheard earlier. _"When this is over, I'll ask her to marry me." _I heard him say again. He'd said that not even an hour ago. And hour ago I knew this case was over. I knew we had won. I knew he would ask me within the week. But now? Now, he was dead._

Dead.

_A bullet pierced my heart. He was dead. Just like my parents. Just like B. Just like After and that little boy I met in New York. He was dead. I would never hear his voice or see his rare smile or feel his touch ever again. I would never stumble upon him sleeping quietly on those rare nights were his insomnia was absent. I would never spend hours listening to him explain some far out theory while we both ate strawberry cake, ever again. I would never be able to just talk to him, ever again. Another sob racked my body and I fell into a fit of tears._ He was gone_._

I awoke with a start, tears forming in my eyes. _Why now?_ I thought, _that happened six years ago, why am I dreaming about it again?_ I sat up and placed my head in my hands. Six years ago. Has it really been six years? And I had been eighteen then. Now I'm twenty-four. _Why do I feel so _old_ now? _ I just shrugged and stood up. The moon had set but the sun was still far below the mountain outside my window. The clock on my bedside table read _5:38._ _Shit. I'm going to be late._ I thought, _that'll make one hell of a first impression._

I had showered the night before, thank Karma, so I didn't have to worry about that. I was about to put on some black leather pants, then decided that wouldn't make the best impression and pulled out a pair of black silk dress pants. I pulled out a simple blue paisley blouse to wear over them. A pair of simple black-heeled boot completed the outfit. I looked in the small mirror in the small bathroom of the small apartment I rented. My black hair hung over my eyes but was relatively kempt. I took a small moment to thank Karma cared that I was Asian. I decided I should pin my hair up today so I pulled it back into a ponytail then twisted it into a bun. I took out a small sliver and sapphire barrette and clipped it onto the bun. I decided not to put on any make-up, my lips were already naturally pretty red and when I rechecked my clock it read _6:58. _ Where over an hour had gone, I'll never know.

Cursing my horrid sense of time, I rushed to the kitchen an downed a few shots of whiskey to help me forget that dream and rushed down the steps of my apartment to the small parking garage beside the main building. Inside was a mix of chars and trucks and one small motorcycle. I headed straight for the bike, hopped on, and revved the engine. Still working beautifully I noticed, and remembered the hours I had spent constructing it. Smiling to myself I speed out of the garage and towards the FBI headquarters in Quantico, Virginia.

I took me nearly half an hour to reach the FBI building. I thanked the sun for making it warm in July and thanked my clothes for not being too wrinkled. I rushed in through the large, glass double-doors that lead to the main office of the Behavioral Analysis Unit of the FBI. I noticed three things as soon as I stepped inside. One: this place was in shades of black and white. Some desks looked like they belonged to five-year-olds. Other desks looked like they belonged to drill sergeants. Two: All the desks were separated my thin glass walls. It seemed privacy was lost on Americans. Three: Some poor little nerdy-looking guy was being picked on by a big, muscle-head black guy and a chubby little blonde girl. Past experience told me to stay out of those matters so I started to just pass them by, but then I heard someone call, "Hey!"

I whipped around and cocked my head to the side, "Are you calling me?" I asked. The big, very big, black guy stood up.

"Yeah," he said, "Are you the new girl Hotch said we'd be getting?" he said.

"Um, Hotch?"

"He's our boss. Try 'Agent Aaron Hotchner' next time, Derek," said the blonde girl, then she laughed at him.

"And now you're lecturing me on nicknames?" the man, Derek, asked.

"Well, you should be more clear with new recruits," the little nerd said as he stood up. No, not little. He's actually really tall, as tall as Derek. This guy just has absolutely no muscle or fat. He's a freaking stick.

"Reid, shut up," Derek said flatly. The blonde girl burst out laughing.

"Um, excuse me? You mentioned Aaron Hotchner?" I asked, tentatively. Derek and Reid had walked off, arguing, and this blonde girl walked up to me.

"Ignore then, they're idiots," she said. Now that I could see her better, I noticed she was actually pretty tall, and wearing heels.

"Um… okay?"

"You're shy aren't you?"

"Um… a little, maybe."

"Hahaha! You're so cute! Where are you from? Asia right? No wait, let me guess… Korea! No, then you probably wouldn't have joined the FBI… I-I'm not being racist or anything, I swear!" she yelped out that last sentence and threw her arms up as if to shield herself. I burst out laughing.

"Hehe, don't worry, I don't think you're being racist. But I'm not from Korea. I'm Japanese."

"Oh… wait, wait, wait, wait! If you're Japanese, then why do you sound British?"

"I was born in Japan, but mostly lived in England. Well… then I moved back to Japan… But I've been in London for the past few weeks, then I moved… here, I guess, hehe."

"You move a lot don't you?" she asked, then started laughing again. "Oh! By the way, my name's Penelope Garcia. The big hunk of chocolate over there is Derek Morgan. And the stick-nerd is Spencer Reid."

"Um, okay then. Well, my name's Alycia Kayne. It's nice to meet you Garcia."

"Please, please, please don't sound so formal, Alycia! Call me Penn, or PG, or Penelope at least, hahaha," she cried and clasped her hands together as if she were begging for some change on the streets of New York.

"Alright, Penelope, but then can you just call my Ali?"

"Of course, Ali!" Penelope laughed as she slung her arm around my shoulders. She had to bend down a bit, thanks going to my damned Asian-shortness genes.

"What happened to who?" Morgan came over and asked.

"Nothing, go back to your nerd fight," Penelope chided.

"Who's a nerd?" Reid asked, completely serious.

"You are. Now, leave us alone so I can take Ali here to meet the bosses," Penelope declared, pushing past the boys, pulling me behind her.

"Ali…?" the boys murmured.

"M-my name's Alycia Kayne!" I called back. Then I turned to follow Penelope. She pulled me to a larger room with a huge monitor resting on one wall and a round table sitting in the center. Ten or so chairs were arranged around the table and another blonde girl was setting out pads of paper and pens in front of each chair.

"Hmm, they're not here yet… JJ, have you seen Hotch or Gideon?" Penelope asked the girl. The girl looked up, her big blue eyes revealing confusion the moment she saw me.

"Um… Penn, why are you dragging a kid around here?" the girl, JJ, I guess, asked.

"She's not a little girl! She's our newest profiler!" Penelope huffed.

"O-Oh! I'm so sorry, um…"

"Kayne, Alycia Kayne, but you can call me Ali," I said.

"Right, Ali. Well, my name is Jennifer Jareau. Everyone calls me just kinda calls me 'JJ' though,' the girl said and smiled at me.

"She's really shy, by the way," Penelope said, randomly, making us both jump. JJ and I both started laughing.

"Hey, you sure she's not a kid, Penn? I'm sorry, Ali, but you sound just like a kid when you laugh," JJ laughed.

"Yeah, I know. I'm told that often. I'm also often told my accent is wrong…" I murmured.

"Well, you are Asian, hon," Penelope giggled.

"Yeah, I know," I murmured again. Penelope laughed again and JJ and I joined her.

"What's so funny?" Derek said in a sly tone.

"You, alone in the dark," Penelope whispered evilly. She, JJ, and Reid, who I just noticed was behind Morgan, all burst out laughing.

"What are you laughing at, Pretty Boy? You're the one who's afraid of the dark," Morgan shot back.

"No, he's afraid of the absence of light," JJ added in. Everyone was in stitches now. I took a step back, smiling, but feeling somewhat left out. I guess this wouldn't last long, but every time I meet a group of new people like this I get so damn shy!

"No laughing!" A scruffy man said as he walked in, laughing, to the large room.

"Speak for yourself, Hotch!" Derek scolded without breaking his laugh.

"Hotch! I found the new girl!" Penelope shouted.

"Hey! Wh-huh. Um… hi?" I stuttered as Penelope pushed me towards Aaron Hotchner.

"Your Agent Kayne?" he asked.

"Um, yes," I murmured.

"C'mon, look up. You're a part of this team now. You should be happy… or scared."

"Hey!" the others snapped. Hotch laughed.

"See?"

"Hehe, yeah!" I smiled.

"Why's there a kid here?" an older man came in and asked.

"She's not a kid!" Penelope fumed.

"She's the new recruit, Gideon," Hotch explained.

"Oh yeah… Well then welcome to the BAU…"

"K-Kayne. I'm Alycia Kayne."

"Jason Gideon," Gideon said as he shook my hand, "Do we have a case?"

"Yes sir," JJ said and handed him a case file. She passed out folders to everyone else, and me. "Three girls were found dead in a shallow grave outside Los Angeles. All three were found incredibly emaciated and tortured, both physically and sexually."

"Well, I think we can see an obvious pattern," Morgan said. And there was. All three girls were clearly Asian. Great.

"Ahh, sorry about this, Ali. Not exactly the best first case," JJ apologized.

"Hmm, oh it's not really a big deal. I'm not one to get personal over race, and I won't be distracted by the fact I look like the victims."

"Are you sure? You know, you don't have to work a case on your first day here," Hotch said.

"I'm fine really. I want to help."

"Alright then," JJ said, "Local law enforcement has called us in and are eager for our help."

"Well that's always helpful," Gideon murmured.

"Are you guys taking this case?" JJ asked.

"Yes. Wheels up in thirty. Garcia I want you to find out who these girls were" Hotch said and he stood up and walked out the door.

"Aye-aye, sir!"

"C'mon, Ali, we're going to Los Angeles. Do you have a go-bag?" Morgan asked me.

"Ah, go-bag?" I asked.

"Yeah, a bag with clothes and travel stuff in it," Reid said.

"Very eloquent, _Dr. _Spencer Reid," JJ laughed.

"Oh, yeah, I have a bag packed," I said.

"Then c'mon, let's catch that plane," Morgan said.

"Plane?"

"We have a jet!" Reid laughed.

And that's how I ended up going to Los Angeles, probably the last city I ever wanted to go to in America. One of my closest friends ran away to, and died, there. And now young Asian girls were being killed there. I glanced at a calendar on my way out to the plane, or jet, and noticed the date. _Friday 13._ Thank you, Karma, for not mentioning this earlier.


	2. Los Angeles Day One

Chapter 2: Los Angeles (Day One)

The jet Reid had been talking about was actually quite small. Only eleven or twelve people really would have been able to ride comfortably in it. There were two tables folder out on either side and a booth around each one. Behind the booth, towards the back of the plane, a row of seats spread across each wall. We gathered around the two tables and discussed the case.

"If you look at it, all three victims were treated in the same manner. The wounds are all identical at least," Morgan started.

"Yeah, you're right," Reid added, "All three were shot nine times. That in and of itself would be plenty to consider a signature, but look at the areas they were shot. Twice in the right arm, three times in the left, once in the right foot, once in each shoulder, and once in the right hand."

"That certainly is specific," Gideon remarked.

"Agent Kayne, do you have any ideas?" Hotch asked.

"Huh, what? Oh, um… these wounds… A pattern like this wouldn't develop out of nowhere. The… killer was careful with them," I said. I picked up a picture of the left arm of one of the girls, "Look at the rings around the wounds. That's gunpowder residue. The killer held the gun right up against her skin."

"Yeah, you're right," Morgan said, "but look closer. There's another mark around each wound." He pulled the picture I had been studying closer to him and pointed out a darker, thinner ring around one of the wounds.

"It almost looks like… a line from a permanent marker," Hotch guessed.

"Well, based on how exact all the wounds are, I wouldn't be surprised if the killer drew rings where he would have to shoot. He wants to be exact," I said.

"Now we need to find out why," Gideon said. The others fell back in their seats or got up to sit somewhere else. I walked to a seat in the back of the jet and stared out a window. Memories were rushing back to me as I flew closer and closer to Los Angeles.

I remembered the first time I came to Los Angeles. L had been convinced he knew who had murdered those people. I offered to go and make sure it was him. We both hoped we were wrong, but we knew he had run away to America. Plus, this whole situation practically _screamed_ "Come and get me, L!" and "Look what you've done, Kai!" We knew B had killed them. No, more than killed. He had beaten and tortured them before he killed them. He had used them. He had tried to create an unsolvable case for us. He had almost killed himself. And all because of me. The pain I had felt seven years ago when that case ended came flooding back. The pain I had felt four years ago when he died came back as well. I felt tears well, but I did not let them flow. I could not let the others see me cry. Not now when all we were doing was heading to Los Angeles.

"Hey, Ali, what are you thinking about?" Reid asked suddenly.

"Wha-! Oh, it's you," I said. He had startled me. Man was I on edge today. I think I need more whiskey. "Nothing. I just… I don't know. I just kinda stare off a lot. Some if my friends used to say it sacred them, hehe."

"You looked like you were in a trance or something," Morgan cut in. "You looked upset, too. Are you alright? You're not worried about the unsub's victimology are you?"

"Unsub?" I asked. My English is horrible but I'm pretty damn sure that's not a word.

"Sorry, Ali, we almost have our own language," Reid said. "It's actually pretty simple though."

"Reid, you find quantum physics simple," Morgan laughed.

"Well, that's not really…" Reid replied.

"But… quantum physics are simple," I cut in. Reid and Morgan looked at me, shocked. "What?" I asked.

"You think that's simple?" Morgan asked.

"Um, yes?"

"What school did you go to?" Morgan asked rhetorically.

"I-I didn't really go to school, actually. Well, not publicly anyway." I tried to explain.

"You went to a private school?" Reid asked.

"No, not exactly. I went to school at Whammy's House, the orphanage I grew up in."

"Orphanage? It's been awhile since I heard someone say that," JJ said. Morgan whipped around.

"When did you get here?" he asked.

"About half an hour ago when we all boarded the plain," JJ said and smirked. "Anyway. Did you really grow up in a foster- um, orphanage? Quite a few of our unsubs, unknown subjects, meaning the killers, were raised in orphanages, or foster homes," JJ explained.

"R-really? I mean, I heard horror stories, but I had a great childhood, I guess. Well, maybe not, but the two caretakers in Whammy's House were always nice. Well, one was, but he was my grandfather, kind of. The other, Roger, yelled at me a lot, but only because I never really behaved…" I said.

"Trouble maker, huh?" Morgan laughed.

"Yeah, I liked to pull pranks on Roger. His face used to get so red!" I started laughing as I remembered all the pranks I pulled. "Watari, the other caretaker, always laughed at me jokes."

"You said he was 'kind of' your grandfather?" asked Reid.

"Yeah. We weren't actually related, but he always acted like my grandfather and called me his granddaughter."

"Like he adopted you?" Morgan asked.

"Well, I guess so. But I still lived in that orphanage… but he did live there so… Anyway, my grandfather taught me everything I know, at least, everything that would be taught in a school. He tried to send me to school but that never worked out too well. Besides, I have… um, no, I was, what did he always say… gifted! He said I was a gifted child."

"Didn't schools around you have gifted programs?" JJ asked.

"They did, but they weren't exactly right for me."

"Wait I'm confused…" Reid started but then JJ and Morgan both started laughing.

"Great job, Ali!" Morgan laughed, "You confused the great Dr. Spencer Reid. Someone get this girl a prize!" JJ started laughing harder but Reid frowned.

"Very funny, Morgan," he said. Now I was the one confused.

"Reid here is the smartest one on this team," JJ explained, "but if you understand quantum physics, I think he might have a run for his money." Now Reid was laughing too. I started a bit as well. It was hard for me not to laugh when these three looked so happy.

After a while we all stopped laughing and JJ went on the explain some vocabulary the BAU used often. She'd already explained "unsub" and went on to explain "victimology" is common traits found in the victims, "M.O." stands, basically, for the unsub's killing method, and "signature" is anything the unsub does that isn't part of killing the victim.

JJ explained all this and I nodded in understanding, but I barely paid attention to her. My mind was distracted. Los Angeles was troubling me, but I had come to realize something else. As I thought about the case, I realized the bullet wounds' meaning. Or at least, I thought of a possible meaning. And I hope, no prayed, I was wrong. Six months ago I had seen those exact same wounds. I remembered that day more clearly than I remembered yesterday.

Nine times. Nine times I had shot that bastard. Each bullet had pierced then exact same places the victims had been shot. Growing up, I had always believed coincidences were just excuses people used to explain things they didn't want to believe. I wasn't about to shrug this off. Whoever was doing this had to have been there that day.

I hadn't forgotten the race of the victims either. All three girls looked just like I had six months ago. My hair had been shorter then, and I didn't wear bangs. All three girls had short hair with no bangs. Pictures of the girls before their deaths showed different hair lengths and styles. Whoever did this was targeting me. I knew it. But why? And who was it?

I thought about who was there that day. Mello, Matt, Near, and those three officers that followed Near around, they had all been there. Light had brought along the task force as well. Was there anyone else? I can't believe any of those guys would want to target me like this.

Should I call Mello, or Near? No, I said I could do this on my own. I've been leaning on them, and Matt, for the past four years. I need to stand for myself. God dammit, Light! You died six months ago! Why are you still doing this to me? I shot you nine times, why can't you just die already? Stop haunting me!

As I thought that, a black shadow flew through the clouds. To anyone else it might have looked like a bird. No, to almost everyone else in the world, there would have been no shadow. As for the people on this plane, only I saw it. Hotch was looking out in the same direction, JJ and Reid were at least facing that side of the plane, but they wouldn't have seen it. That shadow belonged to Ryuk. Or maybe that shadow was Ryuk.

He certainly picked a good time to show up. Ryuk is a Shinigami, and god of death. He's the one who gave Light Yagami, a.k.a. Kira, his Death Note. In other words, Ryuk gave Light his means to _become_ Kira. I don't blame Ryuk, though. Actually, I consider him a friend. It wasn't Ryuk's fault Light turned out to be psychotic.

Ryuk does resemble something from humanity's worst nightmares, however, so I thought it seemed fitting that he showed himself when I was feeling _haunted._ Though I know seeing him will only bring on more painful memories, I felt somehow comforted to know he was still around. I couldn't go to Near, Mello, or even Matt. They would jump at the chance to help me and I didn't think I'd be able to face that. But Ryuk doesn't help anyone. Not unless he sees some fun in it. He wouldn't help me with anything, but if I asked him to just stick around, he wouldn't disagree. And right now, more than anything, I want someone familiar around me.

And sure enough, when the plane touched down in Los Angeles, Ryuk was waiting on the runway, smiling and waving like an idiot. I couldn't help but smile, just a bit, and look up at him.

"What'cha looking at?" Reid asked, making me almost jump out of my skin.

" I saw a hawk," I lied.

"A hawk? I don't see anything,"

"It flew off behind those buildings," I said and pointed out towards some tall buildings.

"Alright then, I guess. Well, anyway, c'mon, we don't want to be late," Reid muttered. He walked after Hotch and the others. A large, black shadow flew over them. Ryuk came down and walked beside me.

"Edgy today, Kaishi?" he asked. He chuckled, a sound that would make a child cry in fear, and continued, "But that's not your name anymore, is it? No, you left that behind. You left everything behind, didn't you?" he chuckled again. On second thought, maybe I would regret having him around.

Waiting for us outside the runway were two black SUVs. Hotch, JJ, and Morgan got in one, Gideon, Reid, and I climbed in the other. Gideon followed Hotch to the local police station. Once inside I noticed immediately the change in air temperature. Considering it was July, I shouldn't have been surprised at the heat radiating off the pavement and the chill blowing from the building's air conditioners. This first thing Ryuk noticed was a painting of a bowl of apples hanging above the chief's desk.

The second thing I noticed were the officers eager welcome for us. The officers all started talking and asking question at once. JJ rushed forward to calm the officers and ask where the chief was. A younger woman told us he was interviewing a suspect. JJ asked is we could speak to him and the woman lead us into a back room. As soon as the chief saw us he practically jumped up from the table he sat at and ran from the room.

"You're here! You're actually here!" he cried.

Morgan nudged me arm and said, "Consider yourself lucky. More often than not we have problems getting invited for cases. This guy is something else."

The chief introduced himself as Joseph Tanner and asked that we call him Joe. He then went on to explain the details he had gathered about the case. Basically he spent twenty minutes saying he had nothing. Also, while he was talking, Ryuk had the sudden urge to dance the Macarena behind him. It took all I had not to burst out laughing. Just imagine Pennywise the clown dancing the polka with Darth Vader and you'll know what I went through. And again, I was the only one who could see him.

After Joe finished Hotch set up a white-erase board and drew three columns. He wrote _victimology_ over one, _M.O._ over another, and _signature _over the last one. By the time he had the board set up the sun had set and Reid began nodding off. Realizing how late it was, Hotch told us all to head to our hotel.

"We get a hotel?" I asked JJ.

"Of course. Where did you think we'd sleep?" she said.

"Guess I really never thought about it. Will we be sharing rooms?"

"Yeah. Usually Reid and Gideon share a room, Hotch and Morgan share, and I have a room to myself, but you can stay with me, if you want to that is."

"Oh, can I? I'd really rather not be alone right now."

"Are you alright?"

"Y-yeah. I just… well, I don't exactly have the best memories of Los Angeles, I guess."

"I can fix that," JJ smirked, "Why don't you and I hit the town tonight?"

"Can we do that?"

"Sure. Once Hotch says we can go to the hotel we're basically of the clock. C'mon, let's have some fun."

"O-okay," I said and followed JJ out onto the streets of Los Angeles. She lead me to a small bar near the station. When we got there JJ pulled the barrette from my hair and the bun fell apart.

"You're Asian, Ali. Show it off," she laughed. I smiled and shook out my hair. It fell just past my shoulders and had a slight wave. "You're so lucky, you know that?" JJ asked, laughing again.

"Not really. My hair can't hold a curl or anything like that. It's too heavy. I'd much rather have hair like yours. It's such a beautiful shade of blonde."

"Everyone says that! But if I don't wash it well enough you'd think I never showered."

"Really? But it looks so shiny!"

"Not anywhere near as shiny as yours!" JJ insisted. Then we both started laughing. By now we were sitting at the bar and the bartender walked up.

"Can I get you ladies anything?" he asked.

"Does a martini sound good?" JJ asked me.

"Sure," I said and the bartender mixed two for us. While we were there plenty of guys tried to pick us up, but JJ always sent them away, usually by embarrassing them in any number of ways. More than once she managed to convince men I was her daughter and insisted she was being harassed by a pedophile. I just laughed and played along, well, at least until I got thirsty and grabbed for my martini. That made the men flush as they realized they had been played.

After about an hour JJ asked if I was ready to go to the hotel. I yawned and agreed. Once we got to our room JJ asked if I wanted some coffee. I asked for a caramel latte and she left the room. As soon as she was gone Ryuk passed through a wall beside the bed I sat on.

"I thought she'd never leaved!" he said, "Are you alone now? You can talk right? It's no fun dancing when no one applauds!" He face was twisted into an exasperated frown which resembled the kind of look Satan would make if he were told to burn an animal rescue center. I burst out laughing and applauded..

"I can talk now, Ryuk," I assured him.

"Well then thank goodness, Kaishi. I was worried I might die of boredom!"

"You can't die. You're a god."

"I can die. Rem di—Ah, no. I um… mean," Ryuk stuttered.

"Ryuk, are you worried about upsetting me?" I smirked.

"Wouldn't you like to know!" he snapped and stuck out his tongue at me.

"Actually I really don't care."

"I don't like you, Kaishi," he muttered.

"Don't call me that anymore. My name's Alycia Kayne now."

"I won't remember that!"

"Yes you will! Kaime Shinse died six months ago. At least, as far as I'm concerned she did."

"Youch. Can you really just… kill yourself like that?"

"Hey, don't go acting like I'm suicidal or anything. Alycia Kayne's not about to die. Not like that."

"Then why do you sound like she will?"

"You've seen the case we're on right? You can't tell me those girls don't look like Kaime Shinse."

"Well I guess… wait! Are you going to start calling yourself like that?"

"I've changed, Ryuk. You must have noticed that by now."

"Yeah, I guess I did."

"And now someone is trying to kill Kaime Shinse again."

"Yeah, but who?"

"It's someone we know. He was in that warehouse that day, he had to have been."

"How do you know?"

"Those bullet wounds. Each victim was shot in exactly the same places were I shot Light. But I can't see anyone there doing this. Unless I'm forgetting someone."

"Well there was that guy. Toru? No, Tera."

"Teru! Mikami Teru! I completely forgot about him! But didn't he die?"

"Guess not."

"You're a damn Shinigami, a god of freakin' _death._ Don't you think you should know things like that?"

"Guess not," Ryuk said and laughed his childhood shattering laugh. I shook my head and lied down on the bed. Well, now I know who the killer is. I think I did pretty damn good for my first case. But still, how the hell am I going to explain this to the others _without_ having to explain I shot this guy's idol nine times and those nine wounds just so happen to be were the victims were being shot? I couldn't think of anything. Mikami is obviously looking for me though. Maybe if I went out alone I could run into him. Or maybe that would be stupid. The door to my room suddenly flew open and JJ walked in with a coffee in each hand. Mikami, you can wait till tomorrow.


	3. Los Angeles Day Two

Los Angeles (Day Two)

I awoke this morning to the sun glaring in my face. I sat up in bed and rubbed my eyes. I heard the shower running and remembered JJ and I had shared this room. Ryuk was snoring on the couch. Apparently Shinigami slept. I guess you really do learn something knew everyday. I picked up my pillow and threw it at him. He jumped awake and screamed.

"Score one for humanity," I whispered. Ryuk stood up and glared at me. "I never would have guess it'd be that easy to scare a Shinigami." I laughed quietly. He continued glaring at me and looked like he might kill me. I picked up and apple that was in a bowl of fruit beside my bed and threw it at him. He eyes lit up as he caught the apple. Licking his lips he gulped it down in one bite. "And score two," I whispered.

"You are not a nice person," he whined.

"No I'm not, am I?" I whispered sarcastically. I chuckled quietly and Ryuk fell into a fit of laughter. I threw him another apple and he took his time eating this one, savoring the flavor.

"I can't be bribed," he said.

"You explained everything you and Light did before he joined the task force because I gave you a jar of applesauce," I whispered.

"That was a fair trade!" he said quickly. I covered my mouth to quite my snicker. "Hey, why are you being so quiet?"

"In case you haven't noticed, there's a completely normal person who has never seen nor even heard about a Death Note in the room over there," I said.

"So?" Ryuk asked, completely confused.

"If she's never seen a Death Note, never _touched_ one, she can't see or hear you. She can, however, see and hear _me_ just fine. Imagine someone you just met having a one-sided conversation with a wall."

"That would be a problem wouldn't it?" he whispered and crouched down as if in hiding.

"She can't hear you!" I hissed.

"Score one for the Shinigami," he laughed. I smiled and threw my other pillow at him. He threw them both back and I finally got out of bed. I walked over to the room's window and stared out over the city. Everything seemed so _familiar_ somehow. But I had only been here for a few days at a time, and every time I always went straight for that prison.

B never wanted to hurt anyone. He just wanted to be acknowledged. After he was arrested I went to visit him as often as I could. At first he only ignored me, but after a few weeks he just fell apart. He confided in me everything he had been thinking since he and L had run from home.

He told me how he felt he was living in L's shadow. He told me he had always wanted me to praise him just as much as I praised L. He told me he was jealous of L. So he tried to outwit L. But in the end, he had lost to L.

My last visit to Los Angeles had been days before Kira found, and killed, B. The last thing B said so me was "I'm sorry."

He had been apologizing for all the pain he thought he had caused me. I had assured him I was alright and that he didn't need to apologize. I said that again and again but after he said, "I'm sorry," all I could concentrate on was the last time I had heard those words. Weeks before I took that last visit, L had died. His last words to me had been those. Seeing B, hearing him say those words, all I could concentrate on was L. Though they denied it, they could have been twins. Their appearance, manner of speaking, and personalities were nearly identical.

After hearing B say that, my heart began to rot. I knew I couldn't stay much longer without being reduced to tears. So I left. On my way out B said, "I'm sorry," one last time. And that was the last thing I heard him say. Four days later I learned he'd had a heart attack. He may not have been in the best of health, but I knew he wouldn't have just died. Not like that. I knew Kira had killed him.

By the time I had learned of B's death I was already back in England. Over the following four years I had been to L's grave several times. However, in that entire time I had never been able to visit B. Maybe it was because I blamed myself for what happened to him. I didn't know.

Now, looking out over the city, I could just barely make out the chapel of the cemetery B had been buried in. I made a silent promise to myself that I would go visit him.

A hand brushed against my shoulder and I spun around, adrenaline poured into my veins. I looked up and a wide-eyed JJ.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to scare you," she said, "I've been trying to get your attention for awhile now. Are you sure you're alright?" The surprised had faded from her eyes and was replaced with concern.

"Oh, yeah. Don't apologize. I had a nightmare last night, that's all. I-I'm going to go take a shower now," I said quickly. I walked over to the bag I had packed and pulled out the first set of clothes my hands found and rushed over to the bathroom. Ryuk chuckled softly.

Today, when the team entered the station, the officers continued their daily banter. Like yesterday we headed towards the rear of the station where Hotch's board was still set up. Chief Tanner was waiting for us.

"Civilian found another victim," he said.

"Are you sure it's the same unsub?" Hotch asked.

"I'll be damned if anyone else did it. Same marks as before. Same bullet wounds, same sexual assault, same signs of torture. Ahh, but there was something different this time."

"Something different?" I asked. The others turned to look at me. I had hardly said anything yesterday, much less asked any questions. In fact, I had only spoke when directly spoken to.

But if something had changed, I wanted to know. Even if the press hadn't heard of these murders yet, there was still a chance someone may have learned of them. I wanted to know if Mikami had murdered again.

"A message was carved onto the poor girl's body," Tanner explained.

"What did it say?" I asked, stunning the team once more.

"We don't know. It's not in English. The symbol looks Asian to me. The body has been taken to a local morgue. You're all permitted to see it at anytime. Oh, one last thing. A few of the victims' families have showed up, just like you asked, Agent Gideon."

"Thank you, Chief Tanner," Gideon said.

"Ali, why don't you and Reid go look at the body? JJ and Morgan, I want you talking to families. Gideon, you and I should begin preparing a preliminary profile." And with that we split up. An officer drove Reid and I to the local morgue. Once there we were quickly shown to the newest victim.

"You guys will put a stop to this soon right?" Dr. Claire, the M.E., said, "I hate having to see such young girls being hurt like this." Dr. Claire was an older woman who looked like she could have had grandchildren the same age as the victims. A pang of sympathy struck my heart, but I quickly silenced it. I needed to focus on this job. That may sound harsh, but now was not the time for naivety.

We were taken to a small room clearly used for autopsies. In the room was a single metal gurney and a mass array of medical tools. Sinks and washbasins lined the walls. On the gurney, a small form could be seen under a thin white sheet. Dr. Claire removed the sheet revealing the pale body of the last victim. She must have been twenty-five at the most. Scars and bruises covered her body, but the two most glaring wounds were the y-incision Dr. Claire had made for the autopsy, and the deep gashes that carved out the message Cheif Tanner had spoken off.

Clearly, the message was not in English, or any roman language. To most likely any other member of the team the lines and dashes may have looked like a jumbled mess, but I could read the message loud and clear. The characters spelled out "Kaishi." This was definitely Mikami.

For as long as I can remember, "Kaishi" had always been a nickname for me. Although I'm not too sure where it originated from, seeing as it, in no way, resembles my true name. After the Kira case had begun I created the name Shinse Kaime for myself and based of off of this nickname. However, during the Kira case I never once used the name "Kaishi." I had even L call me Kaime. As a result, only those who lived in Whammy's house knew of that nickname.

Who still lives, though? Roger, he's still alive. He wouldn't leave the orphanage just yet. Near is still alive, he's still playing the part of "L." Mello and Matt are alive as well. Four people. Four people could have carved this…

No! I told Light about that name! When I had mistakenly believed I could trust him, I told him about my nickname. I told him many things. And he would have had any number of opportunities to tell Mikami Teru.

"Can you read it, Ali?" Reid asked.

"I can. It says 'Kaishi.' Mikami, what are you doing? Are you… looking for revenge?" I muttered.

"Um, Ali? You were just speaking… Japanese?" Reid said.

"I was? Sorry. Anyway, the message says Kaishi"

"What is that?" the Dr. Claire asked.

"Not 'what'. Kaishi is… _was_… a friend of mine." I tried to explain. I wasn't sure how, though. I couldn't explain _who_ Shinse Kaime was.

"_Was_?" Reid asked.

"She… died. Six months ago."

"Ali…" Reid began, his face revealed pity but his eyes revealed confusion. "Do you know anyone who would do this?" His tone told me he didn't want to upset me, but he knew he needed to solve this case.

"I… I don't know," I said simply. To make myself appear preoccupied, I reanalyzed the wounds. My best guess said they were created by a simple kitchen knife. The bullet wounds were identical to the other victims. Seeing them now in person I confirmed that the positions were identical to the wounds I gave Light.

"Um, agents? I found something else. In her hand, the one that had been… shot, there was a note. It looks to be in the same language as the… message," Dr Claire explained softly. She walked over to a small table next to the gurney and picked up a small piece of paper. She walked over to Reid; then seemed to realize he hadn't been able to read the other message. She handed the slip to me. It was a piece of lined notebook paper. Lines of Japanese characters filled the page. The characters read:

_Shinse Kaime Blood loss 20:30 July 14, 2005_

_Shinse will speak with a believed suspect. _

_Suspect will pull out a gun and act as if_

_He wishes to shoot Shinse. Shinse will reveil _

_A knife. This weapon will be used by _

_The suspect. Shinse will receive fatal wounds._

A Death Note entry. Or at least, Mikami wants be to believe it is. I've seen four separate Death Notes and while the front covers varied, the appearance of the pages had always been identical. Each page had half-centimeter spaces separated by black lines. This paper was from a standard college-rule notebook. Also, my true name was not written on the page.

That being said, Mikami seems confident this event will still come to pass. He is prepared to do whatever it takes to create this event. Tonight.

"What does it say, Ali?" Reid asked.

"It says, 'I will continue killing. You will not catch me. These women stained the world. I am merely doing a service.'" I lied. "We need to tell the others about this."

"You're right. Thank you for your help, Dr. Claire. Is there anything else?" Reid said.

"No, this was all I could find. B-but if I find anything else I'll be sure to tell you! You will find this man, right?" she asked.

"Of course we will," I said and smiled. Reid agreed and smiled too. The two of us then walked back to the waiting officer who drove us back to the station. When we walked in, Hotch was talking with the others. I noticed an old phone sitting on a table. The "Speaker" light was flashing on the base.

Penelope's voice sounded, "That's all I could find, Hotch. These girls had only recently moved to Los Angeles. Each had been previously living in Japan."

"Alright, thanks Garcia," Hotch said.

"Sure thing Boss, Garica out!" she said as Reid and I walked in the room.

"Garcia couldn't find much information on the victims," Hotch explained, "I hope you two found something."

"We did, actually. The message carved into the victim is… well, we weren't sure what that meant. But the M.E. found a note in the victim's hand. Ali, what did it say again?" Reid explained. It told the team what I told Reid. I hide the truth about the note. No one here knew what a Death Note was anyway. I doubt any of them would believe me either.

"This certainly does change things, doesn't it," Gideon said.

"JJ, I want you to go to the media now," Hotch said, "Explain the situation. We need possible victims to be aware of the unsub."

"Alright, I'm on it," JJ said. She asked a few officers to contact the local media and set up a press conference. Hotch explained details Penelope had found on the victims, and Morgan explained what he found out from the families. Basically all we now knew was that all four victims had barely set foot in America before they had been murdered. There was also no crossover in the reasons behind the victims' transitions. However, with what the team believed had been written on the note, Hotch decided he could deliver a profile, a basic description of the unsub as well as some main reasons for _why_ he became a killer or why he continues killing.

While Gideon, Hotch, and Reid were explaining the profile, Morgan was working with JJ and me on a tip-line. During her press conference, JJ had asked the population of Los Angeles to call in with any tips or hints. Most of the calls were useless. Some people claimed to know who the unsub was, but when pressed it was revieled that these people had only seen shady looking chracters around Asian looking girls. Not a single call provided any hard evidence. At least, not until around 7:30.

Morgan received the call. He answered in the usual way but his tone quickly turned confused and concerned. He asked the call to repeat what he had said, but then he seemed to realize the caller was not speaking English. He caught my eyes and gestured for me to come over.

Placing his hand over the phone's receiver, he said, "I can't understand this girl. She sounds… Japanese. And she sounds hurt. Here," he pushed a button and the phone's speaker came on.

"Kai-chan, Kai-chan! You… have to help me. I- I don't know where I am. I… I think he wants to kill me." I heard a scream and the girl started yelling, "Kai-chan, help me!"

"I grabbed the phone from Morgan's hand and yelled, "So-chan! It's me, Kai! Please, answer me!"

"And so we meet again, Shinse Kaime," Mikami's voice came through the speaker. He broke out in a fit of laughter and I tore the phone from Morgan's hand. He gasped in surprise but did not have a firm grip.

"Mikami Teru! Where the hell are you? I swear, I will kill you if you hurt her! You know I can!" I yelled. I vaguely noticed the team questioning me. I ignored them.

"Yes, you could kill me," Mikami said calmly, "_Could._ However, this does not mean you _can,_" he finished and begun to laugh again. I heard Soya scream.

"Mikami!" I yelled again. A faint click sounded and a dial tone filled the room. "So-chan…shit" I muttered. Once again, the team began to question me. Above the din of angered voices, I heard one that was concerned.

"Ali, you were speaking Japanese again." Reid. He was not angry, I realized. He may have guessed this case involved me, but now I knew for certain he was positive I was connected to the unsub.

"Have Pen- No, have Garcia look up the name Teru Mikami. If he's dead, look for an alias. He's our unsub. As for this latest victim, her name is Soya Miti. She was supposed to be in Russia. I have no idea what she is doing here," I explained, concentrating on speaking English. "I need some air," I lied.

I rushed from the building, barely noticing the time as I left. _7:46. _The note had said _20:30._ 8:30. That left me about forty-five minutes before Mikami forced his prediction. As I left the building, I saw Ryuk fly over me. I just had to make sure.

"Ryuk!" I called, "If Mikami had a Death Note, would you tell me?"

"Hmm… Well, if you died I would have no more fun. So yes, I would tell you," he said.

"Thank you." Though the name written on that scrape had just been an alias, Mikami knows my real name. He saw it that day six months ago. If he truly does not have a Death Note, then the scrape was just to scare me after all. It was not a warning or any such thing.

The city of Los Angeles is truly a large place. Searching for one person among the millions is impossible. Where would Mikami go? I asked myself. I thought of the victims. All but the last had been found in a shallow grave outside of a small suburb. This location had no meaning. In a flash, I knew where Mikami would be. He wanted revenge. He wanted me to feel the pain he's been feeling. This I knew. And if he wanted his revenge to be complete, there is only one place he would go. B's grave. I ran through the night, Ryuk flying over me as if he were the Grim Reaper, signaling death.

It did not take me long to reach the cemetery. It was not too far from the station. _St. Marie's Memorial Cemetery _was written in curved iron bars over the gates if the graveyard. I sign posted warned against entering between dusk to dawn. I hopped the fence and ran inside.

The graves were laid out in chronological order. The oldest plots were nearest the entrance while the newer ones were yards away. I ran down a paved road, causing nocturnal crows and blackbirds to cry out and fly away. Not a single bird flew within three feet of me. All seemed to be able to see, or at least sense, Ryuk.

I had been in the cemetery for nearly ten minutes before I found the plot containing graves from about five years ago. It hadn't been all that hard to find. The cemetery had been deserted, except for two figures standing beside a lone headstone. As I neared on figure turned his head up and looked at the sky, directly Ryuk. He chuckled.

"Mikami!" I yelled. The taller figure, the one how could see Ryuk, turned to look at me. A cloud drifted and the moon revealed his face. It was indeed Mikami Teru.

"Hello, Kaishi," he sneered and removed his hand from the shorter figured shoulders. Soya fell to the ground. It was impossible for me to tell if she was alive or dead, but for now I had to concentrate on Mikami. "8:23. Seven minutes to go," he chuckled.


	4. 20:30 July 14, 2005

20:30 July 14, 2005

Spencer Reid left the police station following Morgan. The entire team had left, following after Ali. No one was sure what had just happened, but they knew they needed to find Ali. She would know. So Hotch told Reid, Morgan, and JJ to hit the town running. He asked Gideon to contact Garcia about those names, "Teru Mikami," and "Soya Miki." Reid had opted to split up, but both JJ and Morgan thought it would be best if Reid followed Morgan. However, as soon as Reid walked outside he had a sudden feeling. His gut told him to go to the local cemetery. Though he wasn't exactly sure why, he had knew it would be wise to just follow his instincts. Unnoticeably, he took off down a side street that would lead him to St. Marie's Memorial Cemetery.

He wasn't sure where the cemetery was exactly, and normally he would have thought he was only heading in random directions, but right now he knew he was going in the right direction. And sure enough, when he rounded a particularly dark alleyway, large black iron gates greeted him. The same iron gates Ali had seen minutes before. Reid ran beside the gates and climbed over the same fence Ali had jumped over.

He ran through the tombstones and paved pathways aimlessly. The instincts he'd been following had abandoned him. Now he _knew _he was running in circles. But then he saw something flash by the corner of his eye. He turned in time so see Ali be hurled backwards. She immediately flipped herself off the ground and ran back towards her assailant. She twisted her body and landed a hard kick to the assailant's chest.

Reid stood back and watched the fight unfold. Ali fought hard, punched, kicking, and blocking. Vaguely, Reid noticed a standard issue Gloucke laying forgotten beside a lone grave. The gun had most likely belonged to Ali, but she seemed to have completely forsaken it.

This fight continued for what seemed like hours, but Reid knew five minutes had not passed. Both fighters were know covered in blood, most coming from scraps and cuts on their faces. Ali skipped back a few steps, away from her attacker, and said something in Japanese. She then pulled out a knife and charged forward. Her attacker was laughing.

"Three more minutes, Shinse Kaime!" Mikami yelled. He pulled up his hands to block a kick to his face and countered with a kick of his own. I dodged and swung at his face. My punch connected and he nearly fell backwards, but was able to right himself.

He was a good fighter, I had to give him that, but if felt like he learned at a dojo, or some other public institution. L and Mello taught me to fight. We'd fight over everything, from where to go for lunch to would get the last piece of pie after dinner. Sure, Roger was always mad at us, but we all knew situations, like the one I am in now, would arise. We wanted to be able to defend ourselves.

Because I never had a formal trainer, my style was unpredictable. I mixed together moves from just about every style. Kung-fu, taijitsu, karate. I used them all. Mikami used taijitsu. I knew this style well and was able to predict most of his moves easily. Still, I had more own share of bruises and cuts. Soon I realized this fight was going nowhere. I needed to incapacitate Mikami. And I needed to do it soon. If Soya was still alive, I needed to go to her. Best-case scenario, she's only injured. But, knowing Mikami, those injuries will be severe.

I knew Mikami was planning this. I knew I was playing right into his hands. But I had to pull my knife. Even if I could only injure hi, it would be enough.

"Mikami, this game ends now!" I said and pulled the knife I always had strapped behind my back. Mikami smirked.

"Game? This is no game. This is justice!" he laughed. That confirmed it. He was doing this for Light. Light had believed he was a god of justice, and Mikami had too. Mikami was taking over that mantel, it seems.

"Justice? How many innocent people will die before you realize Light's madness?" I asked.

"He was a god! Everything he did was for the future of this world! You! You killed him! You doomed this world!" Mikami shouted. His eyes were practically burning with insane fury.

"I did not kill him! Ryuk had written his name, just like he had promised!" Upon hearing his name, Ryuk seemed to snap to attention. Realizing what I said, he let out a small, annoyed, "Hey." Once again, Mikami looked towards the sky, directly at Ryuk. I immediately took advantage of this momentary distraction. I leaped forward and stabbed at Mikami. He was able to dodge, however.

"You've brought Ryuk with you?" he asked and fell into a fit of laughter. "It seems you are not alone after all."

"What the hell are you talking about?" I said after I had backed away a few feet. Mikami continued his laughter.

"You haven't heard? Those brats, Mello, Matt, Near, they're all dead!"

Though he could not understand the conversation, Reid could guess the contents. Ali had known the unsub all along. And now, it seems, Ali is fighting for her life. Reid wasn't to sure who exactly was winning this fight, Ali had a knife but hadn't been able land a single cut on Mikami, but he could see that Ali was leading the fight away from the third figure.

Reid guessed the latest victim was somehow connected to Ali and rushed over to help her. The girl laying beside the tomb looked to be about the same age as Ali, maybe a little older. She had long black hair and appeared Asian. She also appeared to be severely hurt, if not dead.

Reid picked up the girl gently. He could quickly see she had no open wounds, such as that which a bullet would cause. Still, she could have had any number of broken bones. As Reid lifted her off the ground she groaned and muttered something in Japanese. "Are you alright?" he asked, hoping she knew English.

"Kai-chan…" she whispered, "No… w-who are you?"

"My name is Spencer Reid. I'm here to help you," he said slowly.

"W-where is… where is Kai-chan?" the girl asked feebly. Reid looked down at her. He had remembered hearing that word over the phone's speaker back at the office. He assumed the girl was talking about Ali. Or at least, he hoped she was.

"She is… busy at the moment. She's alright, though. You don't need to worry," he said trying to sound as soothing as possible. "But right now, I really want to know if you are alright."

"If I'm alright?" The girl looked up at Reid with confusion in her eyes. "I-I don't know. I don't remember what happened. I… don't feel hurt…"

"Alright. I want to take you to a hospital," Reid explained, "We can find out what happened, is that okay?"

"Yes, but can Kai-chan come. Please say she can come," she begged.

"Don't worry Kai-chan can come," he said. Reid stood, he held the girl up with one arm while he used the other to call an ambulance. He paused for a moment, and called for two more ambulances to come. Reid closed his phone and slipped it back into his pocket. He looked up to watch Ali's fight once again.

What he saw surprised him. He had thought Ali had been winning. But now he thought Ali would die.

"They're not dead!" I screamed. They couldn't be dead. They were not dead.

"Would you like an invitation to the triple funeral?" Mikami asked. I screamed at him and lunged. He dodged easily. His hand wrapped around my wrist and he bent it back. Pain lanced through my arm as I felt the bone snap. The knife fell from my fingers. Mikami released my wrist and calmly retrieved the blade. "It seems I've made a mistake," he said, "A fourth funeral will need to be arranged now." He began to laugh maniacally and going on about him finally completing Kira's justice. My world went black as I felt my knife pierce my flesh.

"Alycia!" Reid shouted. He looked up just as Mikami had stabbed Ali. Both had snapped their heads around, finally noticing he was there. Mikami dropped Ali and focused completely on Reid.

"And you are?" Mikami asked in flawless English. A nerve snapped in Reid and he pulled his gun.

"SSA Spencer Reid. You are under arrest for the murder of four women, the assault of a fifth, and for he assault of a Federal Officer," he said calmly. Against his expectations, Mikami dropped the knife and lifted his hands in a gesture of surrender.

"You got me, I guess," he said. He fell into another fit of laughter then fell to the ground. Never lowering his gun, Reid walked over to where Mikami lay. The man was still giggling. He pulled a small slip of paper from his pocket and wrote something on it. Forty seconds later his body seized and he clutched his chest. After several moments the seizure ended and Mikami lay still.

Reid watched, cautious for half a minute, but by then he assumed Mikami was dead, though he wasn't sure what had happened. He holstered his gun and kneeled to the ground. In the distance he heard sirens, but he knew if he did nothing, Ali would bleed to death. He didn't know much about medicine, but he knew he needed to put pressure on her wound. He removed the sweater-vest he'd been wearing and ripped it into four pieces. He folded the pieces and pressed them against her stomach. When he noticed the sirens had reached the cemetery he called out for a medic. EMTs rushed around him and began treating Ali. Reid stood and stepped back, trying to figure out what had just happened.

"_Kaime. Wake up Kaime," a voice murmured. I opened my eyes and found myself lying on a sofa in a large room. Giant windows covered the walls, allowing sunlight to fall on my face. The bright lights made my head throb, but I wanted to know who was calling me. _

"_C'mon Kaishi, wake up know," a younger voice said. Turning around I saw four figures sitting around me._

"_Get off your ass, you've been sleeping all day," a third voice said._

"_That's a bit mean, don't you think?" a fourth voice asked the third. _

"_G-guys?" I mumbled. Now that my eyes had adjusted to the lights a little better, I could see L, Near, Mello, and Matt were the ones speaking. I was in the main room of the building L'd had built for the Kira task force. "Where… what happened to me?" I asked._

"_You've been sleeping all day!" Mello snapped, "That's what 'happened'"_

"_She almost died, Mello!" Matt said. Near shook his head and L laughed. _

"_Are you feeling better now," he asked. _

"_I… I think so. I mean, I don't feel hurt at all. I just feel a little… weird?" I tried to explain. _

"_I'd feel weird too, if I lied on a damn couch all day," Mello said. _

"_Must you continue this?" Near asked, "She nearly died."_

"_Shut the hell up! Obviously, she didn't die."_

"_Wait, I… didn't die?" I asked. I remembered Mikami stabbing me. And L is here. Mikami had said the Mello and the others; Mikami had said they had died. I died, too. I must have._

"_No, you didn't," a fifth voice said._

"_I'd been wondering when you would show up, B," L said._

"_B is here?" I cried. _

"_Kai-chan, you didn't die. That agent, Spencer Reid, he managed to stop the bleeding on your wound. He saved you," B explained._

"_No… I mean, why… why am I here then?" I demanded._

"_Because you're not clear yet," Near explained, "and because something is keeping you here."_

"_Keeping me… It has to be you. I… I'm all alone now. I-I don't want to be alone."_

"_You're not alone, dumbass," Mello said, softly now._

"_He's right, you know," Matt said. "But you have to wake up now."_

"_No! If I wake up, you'll disappear!" I cried._

"_Kai-chan, others are waiting for you," B said._

"_I-I know, but…"_

"_No, you need to go know. It's not your time to die," Ryuk said_

"_Ryuk! When did you…?" I asked._

"_I've been here for a while now," he said, "but that's not important. Do you really want the boy to think you died after all he did to save you?" Ryuk's gaze was stern. He was right, though. I didn't want anyone to be upset, and if I died now, Reid would surely feel as if it was his fault._

"_You're right, Ryuk. I'm being childish."_

"_You're being _you_," Mello said. He laughed a little, and the others, except for Near, started laughing too. I smiled. _

"_Besides, Kai-chan, you're not alone. You will make new friends, and Ryuk will stay," Near said._

"_Yeah, you're right," I muttered. "But, I… I'll miss all of you."_

"_And we'll always be here, waiting," B said. I wanted to protest more, but I knew I had to wake up now. The team was waiting for me. _

"I think she's coming around," the nurse said. Reid snapped to attention. JJ stood out of her chair. Morgan turned his head up, and Hotch remained still.

"_Yume_," _a dream_, I muttered. A dream, yes, but one I won't soon forget.

"Ali!" I heard Reid say. Looking over, I saw him and the rest of the team. Worry covered their faces. Reid had explained what had happened in the cemetery to the others. An M.E. told them Mikami had a sudden heart attack. Soya Miki was going to make a full recovery. After I was released from the hospital I went to see her. Doctors said she had no memories of what Mikami had done to her. She told the same story to me and I could tell she wasn't lying. And I was grateful. I'd met So-chan while I was working a case in Russia. During that time, she'd become just like a little sister to me.

After she was released, she told me she was going back to Russia. She said she'd only come to America because her archeology professor needed to host a seminar here. Now that he was done, she'd go back with him. We said our goodbyes and promised we'd keep in touch. After her plane left I boarded my own. The team was heading back to Quantico now that the case was over.

I saw silent throughout the trip home. The team tried speaking to me several times, but I essentially ignored them. Reid asked multiple times if my stomach was alright. Every time I told him I was fine.

And that was true. The wound Mikami gave me didn't hurt anymore. I'd probably have a scar, but it's not like I don't already have half a dozen others. That wasn't what was hurting me. I remembered far too clearly what Mikami had said. "_They're all dead!"_

I didn't want to believe him, but for some reason I did. I felt like he couldn't have lied. I began to feel like it was my fault too. I felt like if I had only called them before this case began, I could have saved them somehow. Or I could have at least known before I'd encountered Mikami.

All these though revolved around in my head. When we touched down in the airport I just said "Good night," to everyone and left. I drove back to my apartment as fast as I could. I drove though back roads and side streets were no police officers would stop me for speeding. I wanted to go as fast as I could. I wanted to feel the adrenaline pumping through my veins. I wanted to feel the rush of the wind through my hair an across my face.

I ended up leaving the city and racing through suburbs and rural towns. After about three hours I found myself in the garage belonging to my apartment building. I kill my bike's engine and went up the stairs to my fourth story apartment.

When I got to the door, I found it was unlocked. I snapped to attention and pulled out the gun I still had strapped to my waist. I slowly turned the doorknob and walked inside.

The ceiling fan in my living room was on, blowing air and shedding light on the room. The small, outdated, television that rested on my entertainment center was showing a commercial for some useless trash people buy for no reason. From where I stood, I could see someone sleeping on the armrest.


	5. Two Nightengales

Author's Note: I just decided to throw this in when I was about three pages through this chapter. I've had the hardest time remembering Ryuk. I had to got back and add in paragraphs and stuff because I completely forgot about him… Other than that, I've been having a lot of fun writing this. I keep watching and rewatching episodes of Criminal Minds, but I really should be reading Death Note more… But every I start, my laptop likes to give me the black-screen-of-death. It must hate Light just as much as I do. So if you notice any glaring mistakes about Death Note, blame my laptop. Oh, and yes, I do know Mello and Matt died in the series, but I thought it would be more fun with them, so Ali ended up saving them. I'll add in how later, I promise.

Oh! And please comment! I want to know what you think!

P.S. I'm currently writing a fan-fic for Fullmetal Alchemist, but I'm not sure I should post it. It's mostly about Scar, actually, almost all of it focuses around him. Anyway, it's already 14 pages long, and I'm not anywhere close to ending it. This may be the longest thing I've ever written. I could split it into chapters, but it'll still be insanely long…

Two Nightingales

I sucked in my breath the moment I took a step into my apartment. The heels I had been wearing made a sharp _click_ when they struck the linoleum-tiled floor. The blonde man on my couch sat up quickly and gasped in surprise. He cursed loudly and rubbed his eyes. His shoulder-length hair was perfectly straight on one side and horribly knotted on the other. He had been sleeping for at least a few hours, but didn't roll around at all. There was chocolate around the corners of his lips. I noticed a half-eaten chocolate bar on the end table next to my couch. It took him a few moments to fully wake up, and when he did he looked right at me. "You walk to loud," he said.

My mind froze. _Mello?_ I thought. _But Mikami had said…_ _He had lied._ I realized this now. I couldn't think of a single reason why I should have believed him, but I had. Surprise must have flashed across my face because Mello looked completely confused.

"Is something wrong?" he asked.

"I… I thought you were dead," I said and started explaining everything that had happened to me since I arrived in Virginia. Mello listened quietly. He didn't even reach for his chocolate bar. He understood what I had gone through and wanted to know why I had thought he was dead. When I mentioned Mikami, hate flared in Mello's eyes. Mikami had nearly gotten all of us killed and Mello wasn't about to forget any of that.

When I was done we both sat, silent, for a few minutes. Mello broke the silence, "Are you sure Mikami is dead?"

"Yes. I was unconscious, but Spencer Reid most definitely explained a heart attack. He wrote his own name in the Death Note. He is dead," I said, my voice steady and strong.

"Then we have something to be thankful for," Mello replied. And he was right. Now we were certain everyone who sided with Kira was dead. This peace of mind was priceless. Now the only ones who had knowledge of the Death Note and our true names are the members of the Kira Task Force. And while they worked with and trusted Yagami Light, once they learned he was Kira even Matsuda turned against him. "But, where did he get the piece of the Death Note?"

"He took a page from Rem's," Ryuk explained. Mello gasped in fear. Ryuk had just walked through the wall right behind Mello.

"What the shit! How long has he been hear?" Mello yelled. Ryuk burst out laughing. And so did I.

"He's been following me around for a while now," I explained. "And don't worry, he's telling the truth."

"You knew Mikami had a page?" Mello asked.

"No. But I know Ryuk won't lie to me. Right, Ryuk?" I asked threateningly.

"I don't lie, it's not my style," he said quickly. I laughed again and turned back to Mello.

"I still have Rem's Death Note, and you can be sure no one will be able to find it, much less use it," I explained.

"You took Rem's? Then Near has Gelus's right?" Mello asked.

"Yeah. Wait, Near? He's alright, right? And Matt?" I asked.

"Yeah, yeah, yeah! Don't worry, we're all fine!" Mello assured me. "Forget about Mikami, okay?" uncharacteristically gentle.

"Mello… Yeah, he's dead now anyway," I said. Silence followed for the next few minutes, then I thought of something. "Wait, why are you here?" I asked.

"What, I can just show up?" he asked sarcastically.

"Well yeah, but I thought you were in Japan. I'm pretty sure you're not just 'showing up' if you're coming from Japan," I said, still giggling. "What about the others? Are they here?"

"We got here on the same plane, but then they got lost," Mello said.

"What! Near and Matt are lost in D.C.!" I yelled. How could he lose them! Those to should never be left alone on a big city, or a small town for that matter. "Go find them!"

"Alright! Just don't bite my head off!" Mello cried and pulled his hands up around his face, mimicking self-defense. I slapped him told him to get some shoes on. We left my apartment and headed to the garage. Mello followed me to my motorcycle, but it was fairly obvious we couldn't fit four adults on it. Mello pulled out a keychain and pressed a button on it. A red Subaru's lights flashed. The car looked brand spanking new and like it cost at least 30 thousand dollars. I asked Mello how he got it, but he just shrugged and got in. He sped out of the garage and drove like an Italian through D.C. Not a single cop even tried to pull him over. Maybe they're all on holiday.

He drove along the main street, but we couldn't see them. Eventually, we got out of the car and asked people if they saw a thin brunette guy walking around with an albino kid. The first time I said 'albino,' Mello gave me a confused look. I told him if Near had pink eyes he'd be an albino, no mistake. He already has white hair, despite being six years younger than me, and deathly pale skin, mostly because he never goes outside. All he needs is pink eyes, but unfortunately, his eyes are pale gray.

While we drove aimlessly around D.C., Ryuk was flying through the air, looking for the others. Mello figured with Ryuk's help, it wouldn't take us long to find them. I, however, knew Ryuk would probably get distracted and fly off, completely forgetting about Matt and Near.

It was around one in the morning when we finally found them. Near was on a swing in a run down park and Matt was playing handheld videogame, probably some version of Zelda. He owned them all.

I saw them first and pointed them out to Mello. He turned the car around and drove, illegally, straight through the park. Matt's head shot up as the head lights fell on him, then he must have assumed Mello was driving and started laughing and trying to get Near's attention. Near looked up when his sneakers kicked against the hood of the Subaru. He looked at the windshield, but it was tinted so he couldn't see me laughing at him.

Mello and I got out of the car and Mello snapped at Matt for getting lost. "You're the one who left us!" he yelled in defense, "Kai-chan, it's Mello's fault, honest!"

"Don't worry, Matt," I said while giggling, "I know it's Mello. It's always Mello."

"Hey!" Mello snapped.

"Why are you mad? Is it because she's right?" Near asked. Matt and I burst out laughing and slapped each other high-fives. Mello glared at all of us and told us to get in the car. We drove back in silence, Matt and I were too afraid to start making fun of Mello or praising Near. Mello drove back safely and we got back to my apartment nearly an hour later.

"Wait a minute," I asked, "are you guys gonna stay at my apartment?"

"You had a better idea?" Mello asked, not really mad anymore.

"I only have one bedroom!" I said. "There's nowhere for you guys to sleep."

"Matt can have the floor," Mello said. Matt yelled 'hey' in protest, but didn't argue much. "And I call the couch."

"Then where's Near going to sleep," I said, raising my eyebrow at Mello.

"He can sleep in this car for all I care," Mello said.

"No!" I snapped, "Mello, you and Matt get he floor. Near gets my couch."

"Why do I have to sleep on the floor?" Matt asked.

"Because Near's the youngest and I like him best." I said.

"I can take the floor," Near said.

"No, Near, just no. You deserve the couch and this is my apartment so my decision is final," I said. Matt laughed at me and Mello went back to glaring. Near just shrugged and walked inside.

When we got inside, I looked at the clock and noticed it was already 2:30. "Shit! I gotta get some sleep," I said and I rushed to my room. By now I had realized I was dead tired and fell asleep as soon as my head hit the mattress. They guys fought around a little, but they soon fell asleep as well.

The next morning I awoke with a start. I looked around, then realized my pants pocket was vibrating. I pulled out my cell phone and the small caller i.d. screen said 'Derek Morgan'. I flipped the phone open and Reid's voice came through. He started to ask me if I wanted to have a tour of D.C. I interrupted him, though, by asking, "Wait, Reid? Why are you on Morgan's phone?"

"Huh? Oh, yeah. My cell phone is broken. Hey, did I wake you up? You sound like you've been sleeping."

"Yeah, I just woke up. What time is it?"

"It's almost noon, Ali."

"What? Really! Dammit," I said. I told Reid the tour would be fine, and he told me to meet him outside a library that was close to my apartment building. I said good-bye and he hung up. I gathered some clothes, a t-shirt for the band Three Days Grace and some blue jeans, and I ran towards my small bathroom. The boys were still sleeping, Near was on the couch, so I had to step around Mello and Matt to get to my bathroom. I took a quick shower and when I got out Matt had woken up.

"Hey, Kai-chan, what'cha doin'?" he asked. I told him about my trip to D.C. and told him to wake up the others. Why not? Knowing them, they'll me here for a while. I might as well introduce them to my team. I'll probably be calling them for help on cases from time to time anyway.

It took awhile to get Mello up, but Near got up as soon as I turned on my coffee maker and the beautiful scent of drink of the gods filled my apartment. I had to put a cup in front of Mello before he started to move. I love coffee, I really do. We all do. After each of us had had at least three cups, we headed for the streets.

Waiting outside the library were Reid and Morgan. I waved when I saw them and Reid waved back. Morgan looked confused. Probably because I had three guys following me. "Hey you two!" I called.

"Ali, who are these guys?" Morgan asked.

"Oh, sorry. They kinda followed me from Japan. They've been my friends since I was a kid, and they just got here, so they wanted a tour, too," I explained. "This is Mel-,"

"Miheal Keehl," Mello said. "And this is Mail Jeevas and Nate River." I looked up at Mello. _Why are you using your real names?_ My face asked. Mello just shrugged. "We like to go by nicknames, it's something we grew up with. I'm Mello, Matt, and Near."

"Those are…interesting names," Reid said.

Matt started to laugh and said, "We're all from different parts of Europe. I'm Czechoslovakian, Mello's German, and Near's British."

"'Ello, Guv'na'," Near said. Matt and I burst out laughing. Mello just rolled his eyes and scoffed. Morgan and Reid were still confused.

"He almost never tries to be funny," I tried to explain.

"Um…right. Anyway, Ali, if they all go by nicknames, does that mean you do too?" Reid asked. I stopped laughing, finally, and looked at Mello. He nodded, telling me I should tell them. I was a bit confused, though. After the mess with Kira, I figured, Mello especially, would want to try extra hard to hide his true name. I made a mental note, which I'll probably completely forget about, to ask Mello later.

"Yeah, it was a thing we started back in the orphanage we grew up in. My name was Kaishi. My real name is… Kaekome Hitsuna." I explained. Reid nodded like he understood, but Morgan looked suspicious.

"So why hide it? And where did 'Alycia Kayne' come from?" he asked. I hesitated. I didn't want to tell them everything. I almost felt ashamed to admit it, but I just couldn't trust them. After Light's betrayal, I've felt it hard to trust anyone. But Mello wanted me to tell them my name, and I do trust him.

"'Alycia Kayne' is just the first name I could come up with. As for why I hid it, if people know you're real name, you become very easy to find. I know this sounds cryptic, but I used to live the kind of life where staying hidden means the difference between life and death. Back when I was in Japan, I went by the name Kaime Shinse. This name I got from the nickname.

"Um… if you don't mind, can we stop talking about this," I said. Morgan agreed, but he looked like he would ask later. Reid just seemed happy to get on with the tour, but something seemed off. He still wanted to ask me more as well.

We spent the rest of the day walking around the city. Reid enthusiastically showed me the best places to eat get coffee, and catch a movie. Morgan added detail here and there, but he obviously wasn't very interested anymore. As the sun started to set, Reid lead us to a small café and he all ordered coffee and burgers. As we ate, Matt drilled Reid about the best places to get video games and electronics.

"Wait, wait, wait," I said, "How long do you plan on staying here?"

"You want us to leave?" Mello asked, "I guess we could go back to Japan. Of course, we have nowhere to go anymore, since Watari's funding ran out. We could go to Roger, I guess, but…" Mello trailed off. I glared at him. 'Watari's funding' referred to the building he and L had built for the Kira case. Roger must not want anything to do with that. Typical Roger. And, of course, none of us wanted to get the hours long lecture Roger would no doubt give us for the years of trouble we caused him, followed by running away without a word of warning, nearly getting ourselves killed going after Kira, and not bothering to go back to see him in months.

"I get it," I said. "But get your own place. My apartment's way to small." Matt snickered. I rolled my eyes and shook my head. I needed a bigger house. The rest of dinner went on without event. Once we were done Morgan offered to pay the tab. I tried to pay some, but he insisted. He confused me, I was fully convinced he didn't like me or my guys.

After dinner, Reid wishes us good night and he and Morgan left. Mello and the others walked me back to my apartment. On the way Near mentioned he noticed a black bird was following us. I looked up, but I didn't see a bird anywhere. I did, however, notice Matt leaning on Mello's shoulder.

"What's up with you two?" I asked. Matt giggled and Mello blushed. Wait. Mello…blushed? "Are you guys…together…or something?" Now Matt laughed and nodded. "AA-AH! Since when? Why wasn't I told of this?" I practically shouted.

"You might want to keep you're voice down, you are in the middle of D.C."

"Shut up, Near." I mumbled, "Well, answer me!"

"Um…" Matt thought, "I think, not long after you left, actually. C'mon, you had to know that this was coming."

"You still should have told me! Do you know how long I've been waiting for this!" I started laughing and walked the rest of the way home happier than I've been in a long time. I was happy for them, really. Matt walked home leaning on Mello again and Near started to lean on me. After a few minutes, I just picked up Near and carried him home. I know he's not a kid anymore, but I still can't help but treat him like one.

Not long after I started carrying him, I heard and felt his breathing slow as he fell asleep. Right before he did, he mentioned the black bird again. I looked around, but I still couldn't find the bird. Oh well, he's tired. Everyone sees things when they're about to fall asleep.

When we got to my apartment, I laid Near on the couch and Mello and Matt took the floor without complaining. I walked to my room and exchanged my jeans for some sweatpants. I would have fallen asleep as well, but Ryuk walked through me wall. "Hey there," he said. I glared at him and told him I was trying to fall asleep. He laughed at me and said I sleep too much. I just threw my pillow at him before falling asleep. The last thing I heard was him saying something about a black bird and apples.

That night, I dreamed about two nightingales flying through a storm. One got lost, and the other spent the rest of its life searching for it's mate. I woke up in the middle of the night with a tear rolling down my cheek.

Author's note: I planned this note before I planned the first one. Yes, Mello and Matt are together, of course they are Also, while Ryuk was away, he had quite the adventure in D.C. I'll upload that one-shot…probably in a few weeks. I have three stories going right now. This one, my FMA fan-fic, and one about a small-time gang in New York that may or may not experience a zombie apocalypse. I'm not sure yet.

Oh, one last thing I forgot to add in before. This fan-fic starts several months before Elle joins the BAU. In the show, she joined right after Gideon came back, but I don't like her, so I started things off a bit differently. Actually, she's barely going to be in this, mostly because she's annoying and I don't like her.


	6. Halloween Party Part Uno

Halloween Party (Part Uno)

(Author's Note: I don't know why that's in Spanish…)

Several months passed without anything of interest happening. We went on more cases, but after one or two, I realized this job followed a sort of routine. One I was quite used to following form the days I had spent as Eraldo Coil and Deneuve. The BAU would get a call, JJ would answer it, then we'd go find the killer.

During that time, I started to go out with JJ, Garcia, and Reid quite often. We'd normally just walk around D.C., but sometimes we'd drag Reid into a store and make him buy us things. JJ said he lived in this shabby little apartment with a cat he named Einstein. JJ lived in a nice house in a quite neighborhood, and Garcia lived in a high-end apartment in central D.C. Reid had the money; he just didn't see the point in a nice house. So, he bought us clothes and shoes.

I'd gotten a new house myself. Mello and the others finalized their decision to crash at my apartment. I came home from work everyday to see Matt eating everything and Mello sleeping. Near always retreated to my bedroom and built elaborate towers made from those little card teepees. More often then not, I fell asleep with half my room still dominated by a thin cardboard fortress.

After a few weeks, I'd had enough. I bought a bigger house farther from D.C. This place had three bedrooms and two bathrooms. The Near and I both got our own rooms, and Mello and Matt shared the last one. Those two also shared on of the bathrooms. Near and I shared the other.

Not long after I'd finished moving, I came home and was greeted by two very large dogs. Mello decided we needed a dog to watch our house while we were away, so he got a blonde German Shepherd, named Michael, and a black Rottweiler, named Mitch. Near didn't want to be left out, so he bought a little white kitten that he named Nicole. Near also didn't want me to be left out, so Mello bought me a lobster. So I kicked his ass, and then named the lobster Aminara. (See Note at bottom)

By now, it was the end of October, and Morgan announced he was throwing a Halloween party. He invited every member of the team, even me. We hadn't talked much outside of the job, but after about a month, he seemed to start to soften towards me. He definitely didn't trust me yet, but then again, he seemed like the kind of guy who didn't trust anyone. So of course, I went to the party. It took me forever to find a decent costume, though.

"No, Mello, that idea's stupid," I snapped. He suggested I dress up in a clown costume he'd found. Clowns scare me. He started laughing and put the costume back on the rack. Near and Matt came around an aisle with three of their own choices. Among them were a black cat, a seductive devil, and an old witch. I shot them all down.

It's not that I didn't like the costumes, they were just far too common. They did give me a great idea, however. I took the three costumes they pick and bought each one. Matt asked what I was doing, but I told him it was a secret.

We left the Party City store and walked back to the my new house. I opened the door, and Mello's dog Michael lunged for me. I sidestepped the dog expectantly, so he crashed into Mello instead. "Dammit, Kai!" he shouted at me, after he finally managed to get the enormous animal off of himself. "Stop calling me that," was my only response. Instead of asking if he was alright, I went over to my lobster and dropped a few freeze-dried shrimp in his oversized tank. Mitch was sleeping in the kitchen wear a ray of sunlight was warming the ground, and Nicole was sleeping on my pillow, not Near's, _my_ pillow. Stupid cat.

I ignored both mammals and instead headed to the basement. Down there I had more art supplies than you could possible imagine. When I lived in Whammy's House, I'd been encouraged to draw and paint, instead of the more obvious option of following L, B, and Mello, who had all joined up with a local gang. Unfortunately, I still joined, and I drug Matt with me.

I did, however, gain an intense love of art because of Roger's efforts, music too. Mello, Matt, Near, and I even formed our own band. But we had to disband not long after because Roger thought we'd just ruin our lives if we became famous. Oh well.

So now I have a basement full of all sorts of drawing and paintings. Mello's been insisting on putting a recording suite down here too. I told him he had to pay for it, though, so that'll take a while. In the mean time, I had a costume to make. I took the horns and dress from the devil costume, the gloves and bodysuit of the cat costume, and the cape that came with the witch costume. The witch costume also came with a makeup kit that would be perfect.

I draped the cat costume over the devil one and cut the cat's to it was the same shape as the devil's. Then I sewed the cut costume so it would fit better on me. All three costumes had been smalls, but they were still far too big for me. The witch costume came with some nice boots, but the devil's shoes had black wings on them, so I ripped them of and stuck them to the boots. I also cut the sleeves of the witch's dress off because they fit tight across the upper arm, but billowed out and at the end. I sewed in a draws string to the top of the sleeves so I could tighten them around my thin arms. The cat gloves weren't very furry or cat like, but they were fingerless, so I kept them the way they came. I kept the witch's cape the same too. It was black, but had navy blue swirls throughout it, which I thought was perfect. The witch makeup kit consisted of a large amount of bright green paint and smaller portions of colors like blue and pink. I used the green as lipstick and eye shadow, and added red around the corners of my eyes like it was eye liner. I also lined my lips with the blue.

After I had put everything together, I looked in the mirror to see how I'd done. The dress I'd made was very low-cut, it barely covered my chest, and the skirt of the dress was extremely short. _Perfect,_ I thought. The witch's boots came up to just below my knees, so I decided against any form of stockings. The sleeves I'd made looked amazing. They fit perfectly to my upper arm, but at the elbow they loosened and ended far below my hands. The gloves added just the right touch. I looked at my hair, then, and hated it. This looked just couldn't pass if my hair was long. So I decided to get it cut. I donated most of it, which was almost two feet, so now my hair was only about two inches long and naturally spiked out. This was exactly what I'd wanted.

While I was gone, Mello had spray painted the devil's horns black, which made them an even better fit. I'd also picked up a cheep black little tiara while I was out, and with my new hair cut and the black horns, my Demon Queen costume kicked some serious ass. Mello, Matt, and Near approved, so I headed off for Morgan's party.

(Author's Note: The lobster idea was due to me buying a lobster instead of a goldfish in The Sims 3. I was half asleep at the time, so I didn't noticed I'd bought a lobster until I got home and put it in the fish bowl…And I'm way to lazy to go back to swap the lobster for a fish, so 'hello!' Aminara. The other pets I came up with while I was playing Sims 2 Pets. My sister decided to play my game and bought two cats and a dog, but she gave them stupid names. SO! I changed them, then made a character that looked as close to L as I could make him.)

As I had expected, Morgan had more than one house. He had an apartment not far from the office that he usually stayed in. He also had a second house that was much bigger and nicer. I was one of the first to arrive, so his giant foyer only had a few people in it. I didn't know any of them, so I wandered around until I found Morgan.

He was standing by a bar and handing out drinks to a group of women I've never seen before. Each girl was wearing the same overly gaudy, flashy dress, but each dress was a different color. The drinks Morgan was giving the girls matched their dresses in color, and each had a dainty little umbrella. The drinks themselves looked like martinis, but they also looked like the kind of drink that couldn't get a toddler drunk. I prefer beer and whiskey, but that's just me.

When Morgan saw me walking in he looked confused at first, but then he seemed to recognize me and he waved. The three girls scoffed and walked away. "Don't worry about those bitches," I said to Morgan's look as they walked away. He laughed and turned his attention back to me.

"What happened? You lose a fight with scissors?" he asked and flipped a lock of my spiked hair.

"You like?" I asked and smiled deviously. He laughed again and took the liberty of pouring me some Jack Daniels. "Funny, most guys would get me some fruity-ass martini," I commented.

"I'm not most guys," Morgan responded. I gave a short laugh and gulped the whiskey. "So what are you supposed to be?"

"I'm the Queen of Demons," I said. Morgan looked amused and said the costume was fitting. I asked him what he was, and he told me to figure it out. He was wearing a fake goatee and a black suit. He was also wearing a wig that looked like the kind of hear a Mafia boss would have. It was salt-and-pepper and slicked back. He also wore a large gold chain around his neck. "The Godfather?" I tried.

Morgan looked shocked for a moment, then started laughing. "Is it rude to think you've never seen The Godfather?" I asked him to explained, and he responded, "I always thought Mafia flicks were and American thing."

"Hey, I've spent plenty of time in America," I said, "Besides, you can learn a lot from a movie like that." I might have said more, but then I saw Reid walk in and I ran to show him my costume. He was wearing a large, white wig and a ratty old suit. I asked him who he was, and he said he was Einstein. "Oh!" I said, "I get it now."

"Really?" he asked tentatively, then he continued, "Are you supposed to be… some kind of demon?" I smiled, laughed, and turned back to Morgan, "See? He gets it!" I yelled. The Godfather just shook his head, and Einstein looked confused. "Ignore him," I told Reid. I pulled him towards the drink bar and grabbed a bottle of wine and two glasses.

Morgan had decorated his house to look like a ballroom. Small tables were scattered behind a grand staircase that was blocked off by the bar. I pulled Reid to one of the tables in the very back. He just went along with it. I poured us each a glass of wine, and we spent the next half hour or so just talking about random things. I explained how I made my outfit, and Reid explained how he found his. He found an old tuxedo and wig in a local thrift store.

"Oh Reid…" I muttered. By then the rest of the team had arrived, so we took the half-full (optimism) bottle of wine back to the bar and joined the others. Penelope was wearing an outfit similar to mine, only hers had every color you could think of. And instead of having wings on here boots, they were on her back. She was a faerie queen. JJ was wearing an elegant, white ball gown with long white gloves. The gown and gloves were covered in red splotches, and she was wearing a red mask. She tried to turn The Masque of the Red Death into a masquerade dress. I thought it was brilliant, which sounded especially British because of my accent.

Hotch came in wearing layers of old clothes. He said he wanted to go as a hobo because his pregnant wife Haley was wearing what looked like something the queen of England would have worn two hundred years ago. The hobo look was meant to make her look insanely beautiful and majestic in comparison. And it worked, too.

Even Gideon showed up in costume. He was dressed as a WWII fighter pilot. Something told me I'd have more than a few WWII jokes to deal with before the night was over. A few more people showed up that I didn't know, and after they did Morgan announced the party had officially started.


	7. Halloween Party Part Dos

Halloween Party (Part Dos)

After the last few guests showed up, Morgan blasted the music and dimmed the lights even more so than they already were. Songs from every genre filled the rooms, and the super low bass caused the entire house to rock. Strobe lights of all colors were mounted on every wall. Only a small room behind the kitchen escaped the loud music and flashing lights. And it was in this room that Hotch, Haley, and Reid preferred to stay. Reid didn't like the load noise and bright light, and Haley was worried the bass would harm her baby. Hotch wanted to stay with Haley.

I stayed in the middle of the party. A dance floor had formed in the main foyer, and I spent most of the night in the middle of it. I loved to dance. I loved to feel the music running through my veins as I twisted and turned to the beat. Cheers were yelled and whistles sounded, so I figured I was putting on a good show. After a particularly fast song, I faded into the crowd and found Morgan handing out drinks again.

"Damn, Ali, you got moves," he laughed as he handed me an ice cold beer. I chugged half of it before answering, "Dancing's good for your heart." He laughed again.

"Oh hey, are Mihael and the others coming?" he asked me. I started to reply, "No, I forgot to tell them," but then I stopped and instead said, "I forgot to tell them, but they'll figure it out soon." Morgan looked confused, but I didn't elaborate. I couldn't.

I had seen Ryuk flying around when I first got here, but then the music started getting louder and I haven't seen him since. My best guess said he went to get Mello, Matt, and Near. And knowing Mello, he'd want to put on a show so he'd probably bring the guitars and drums he insists on keeping. And sure enough, not long after I started talking to Morgan, my guys showed up in a blaze of glory.

After I had left the stage, most people started filling in the open space and splinting off into smaller groups. But then the music quieted and someone called, "Kaishi!"

Mello had a guitar, Matt had drums, and Near had a keyboard. Matt was smiling and waving me over. Morgan immediately figured out what was happening and pushed me back towards the growing stage. When I got close, Matt pulled me through the crowd. "That's not my name," I hissed at him, but he told me to shush and shoved a microphone in my hands. I glared at all of them, but I walked up to stand beside Mello anyway. I hated putting on a performance like this, but I wasn't going to deny the cheering crowd.

Mello started to play "Kryptonite" by 3 Doors Down. At least he was started with one of my favorites. Then Near and Matt joined in. Near's keyboard handled the bass. We never did have a bass player, but most of the songs we played didn't have piano and that's the only thing Near can play. So we got him a keyboard that can play any instrument. And it sounds legit.

"_I walked around the world to ease my troubled mind_," I sang. We played through this song, then Mello started a Breaking Benjamin song. We rolled along through Three Days Grace, Seether, and Nickelback. He even snuck in a little Flyleaf and Paramore.

I have to admit, I was having a lot of fun. I hate being in front of crowds, but I was singing and dancing and loving the feeling of it all. Mello or Near would start the melody, Matt would add to the effect, and I'd roll it all together, just like when we were kids back in the orphanage. Roger used to get so mad, but Watari was always smiling and praising us. And that's really all we wanted.

While we played the crowd, including Ryuk who was clearing visible hovering two feet about the mob, was dancing. I could here so many voices singing along. If I looked hard enough, I could make out Morgan, JJ, and Penelope in the crowd. Reid, Hotch, and Haley were still missing, but I could see Gideon standing near the kitchen door.

We finished off with "Help is on the Way" by Rise Against. "_Help is on the way…On the way,_" I finished. Cheers rang out through the crowd again. I was about to turn and walk back towards JJ and the others, but Mello stopped me.

"Just wait," he said. I knew the look in his eyes far too well. Something was about to explode. Right on queue, firecrackers began to go off in the mob of spectators. The cheers were replaced by screams, then bouts of laughter as the people realized they weren't in danger. I noticed Ryuk begin to circle over everyone, then I saw more firecrackers in his hands. Small burst of multicolored lights appeared above the stage that had been created. The crowd looked up in wonder. The firecrackers mixed with lighting Morgan already had set up and created an almost mystical show. When the last firework died, voices cried out louder than ever before. Everyone was cheering and clapping.

"Mello, that was crazy!" I yelled over the crowd. He was bent over in a fit of laughter. He probably would have fallen on his face, but Matt was holding him up. Matt was laughing almost as hard, though. Even Near was laughing. I started at the boy in shock. He looked at me in confusion, and then I told him, "When did you learn to laugh?" Mello and Matt started laughing even harder now, and both of them fell to the ground.

"Ali! That was completely crazy!" Morgan said as he ran over to me. The biggest, most infectious smile played across his dark face standing out in stark contrast thanks to his pearly white teeth. I smiled back just as happily.

"Don't tell me! I'm just as surprised as you," I chuckled. "They're the crazy ones," I said and pointed over towards Mello and Matt.

"Yeah you're on to talk!" called Mello. "When's the last time we got to do the lights?"

"How about every time I wasn't there," I replied poking my finger in his chest.

"Aww c'mon, Kai. You know shows are never as much fun without your vocals. We barely preformed at all when you weren't there," Matt interjected.

"Why would you tell her that?" Mello snapped angrily. Matt just chuckled nervously and rubbed the back of his head.

"Because he, like everyone else, likes me more," I replied with my tongue out. Mello glared furiously causing Matt to rush over and stop him from tackling me. "Get a room," I called to them then turned my attention back to Morgan.

"He looks like he could murder you," the agent commented.

"I'm used to it," I replied. "Oh, they're fighting again!" They boys were tackling back and forth across the dance floor. A number of people gathered to cheer on one or the other. Morgan asked if I should stop them, but I insisted they'd calm down as soon as one landed a good punch. And surprisingly, that one was Matt.

Mello fell hard but was right back on his feet, though he clearly didn't feel like fighting anymore. "Told you so," I said to Morgan. He laughed and asked if I wanted anything to eat. "Yeah, sure," I told him and we headed for a buffet near the kitchen.

The buffet was lined with all sorts of food including burgers, chili, Caesar salad, barbeque, and a gigantic bowl of Halloween candy. When I saw the bowl I immediately pulled out a handful of candy corn. Morgan gave me a look, but since I'm the only one who actually likes candy corn, he didn't object.

He did help himself to some burgers and chili, but I stuck to the salad. "Salad? I figured you'd go straight for the steak," Morgan commented.

I shook my head and told him, "My heart is crazy weak. It sucks, but if I don't watch what I eat my it'll just stop."

"Ouch. That does suck," Morgan replied.

"I miss bacon!" I cried in a voice that sounded like I would burst into tears. Morgan fell into a fit of laughter. Then we were both laughing. When Penelope found us, she immediately took on a face that said she felt left out and jealous.

"What did I miss?" she asked.

"Ali can't have bacon," Morgan replied simply which brought on another round of laughter for all of us. When we calmed down, I finally noticed Reid standing behind Penelope.

"That was really good, Ali. The show, I mean," he said tentatively.

"Yeah, Yeah!" Penelope cheered, "You were great! Why didn't you tell us you could sing like that?"

"You never asked," I replied with a smirk, "And I've been singing and playing music since I was little. Mello, Matt, and Near too. Y'know, it's kinda funny. Roger would always yell at us for making too much noise, but the alternative was running around London, which he'd also yell at us for." I finished with a shot chuckle at the memories.

"You keep calling them by nicknames," Reid started, "I thought, especially Mihael, didn't like those names anymore."

"Old habits die hard. And besides, they still call me Kai. It's only fair that I stick with the names. Wait! You guys have to start with the nicknames again! Think of it as petty payback for making me sing in front of a crowd of strangers." I finished with an evil laugh that over exaggerated the entire situation so much even Reid laughed.

"Haha, okay why not?" Morgan agreed. Both Reid and Penelope agreed as well. It really wasn't a big deal, but I felt glad that I could at least get under Mello's skin.

The rest of the party passed with plenty of music and booze. Slowly people started to filter out and the music died and the alcohol ran out. I stayed as long as Mello and the others did, which was almost the entire night. By the time we got home I was pleasantly drunk and very tired. Thank God for Matt or none of us would gotten home. Mello was completely smashed, a very entertaining sight, and Near simply refused to drive. When I got home Ryuk was waiting. He tried to tell me some joke, but I fell on the couch as soon as I reached it. He probably spent the night trying to wake someone up.

The following morning came far too soon. Ryuk was still going on about his joke, but I didn't care nearly enough to pay attention. Instead I focused on making coffee before I fell back to sleep. I supposed I should have been glad. I was practically immune to hangovers, but Mello sure as hell wasn't.

He stumbled groaning into the kitchen with a bright eyed Matt behind him. "You are about to die," Mello muttered murderously.

"Hey, no murdering around a federal agent," I replied, the sight of Mello's mood putting me in very high spirits.

"Go to hell, Kai," he replied. For the next hour he sprawled on the couch while Matt tried to revive him. After five minutes he gave up and enjoyed half a pot of coffee. Obviously, I drank the other half.

When Near managed to crawl out of bed he just went straight for cereal. We had a box of Lucky Charms which he stole and took back to his room. I had a feeling I wouldn't see him for hours. I almost wanted to tell him not to eat cereal in his room, since I'd have to clean up any mess, but I stopped completely when I noticed the date on the calendar. Today was November 1st.

"Anyone up for a short trip home?" I called. Mello immediately sat up and Near came out of his room.

"Yeah, lets head back," Mello said. Matt stared out the large window wall and stared at the raindrops battering the glass.

"You think it'll rain all week?" he asked solemnly.

"Probably. You might want to check," I told him in the same flat, slightly depressed voice. Today was November 1st. Seven years ago, it had been raining too. "I gotta call my boss," I told the guys. There was a phone in that room, but I decided to use the one in my bedroom simply because I wanted to be alone for a bit.

I called Hotch and told him a wanted to take a few personal days. "Is something wrong?" he asked.

"There's someone I was to visit. Someone I haven't seen in months," I told him. I knew it was vague, but I hoped he'd be able to tell from my tone how much this trip meant to me.

"Alright. I can give you a week."

"Thank you. Thank you so much." I hung up and just sat on my bed for a few minutes. The mattress was built into the wall under a bay window. From where I sat I could see people running through the streets trying desperately to escape the rain. I must have been sitting there for far longer than a few minutes, because before it felt like a second had passed Near entered my room asking if I was alright.

"Yeah, I'm fine," I told him, but I could find the heart to fake a smile. We went back out to the living room and I was that the guys had already packed bags for themselves and me. At first I wondered where they had gotten clothes, considering only Near came in my room, but then I remembered leaving a huge pile in the laundry room. "Alright, let's get going."

It ended up taking until about 8 that night for us to finally catch a plan to London. But when we finally reached the British island, Roger was waiting vigilantly for us. We never called or sent word, but he knew we'd come. I know I left without a word, and I was sure the others had too, but Roger was still standing there in the rain with a car waiting to take us home for the night. An intense feeling of belonging came over me and I nearly started to cry.

That night I found my way back to the room I used to have here in Whammy's House. Two beds sat on either side of a small window directly across from the door. Originally pink walls had come to be covered by posters and scrawls. One wall was dominated by a drawing I'd spent the better part of fifteen years working on. From a distance it looked like someone took hundreds of black-and-white photos and made a collage of them. But when you got closer you'd see that not a single inch of that wall was anything more than a charcoal drawing. Each photo represented all the friends I'd made here and every memorable moment we'd spent. Mello, Matt, and my first concert. The first day Near came to the Orphanage. The day I left to follow L. And the day I came back. Everyone could be found somewhere on this wall.

Then I turned to the other wall. The bed beside it was dusty and appeared to have been in the same messy state for years. The wall was covered in posters for bands, many of which had fallen out of popularity more than a decade ago. I walked over to the bed, and I saw all the scattered knickknacks along the headboard. I was brought suddenly back to the last night anyone had slept in this bed.

I'd been about to fall asleep myself, but something had kept me awake. The closest friend I'd ever known, even closer than L, was late coming to our room. I remember it was until long after midnight that she finally came back. I'd said goodnight, and she did too. And just like every other night, I fell soundly asleep.

Thinking back, I should have known something was wrong. I should have known she wasn't alright. But I was too tired to do anything, or at least, that's what I told myself.

The next morning I was the first to know. Even later that night, long after everyone had been soundly asleep, one girl had remained awake. She went, silently, into a bathroom on the other side of the house and used some old bed sheets to for a makeshift noose. Whammy found her not half an hour later, according to the mortician. "Good night." The words were so simple, so common, but they were the last I'd ever heard After say.

(Author's Note: Oh. My. God. This took me so long to write…Writer's block. I think I had a good idea for the party, but I must have forgotten or something. Instead, I spent the last who knows how many weeks I've been trying to end this freaking thing - And I did! Actually, I do remember planning on starting the next chapter with the trip to London, but oh well ^-^)


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